root salad Cigdem Aslan
The London-based Turkish singer is just as likely to sing Greek, Kurdish or Jewish songs. Jamie Renton approves.
I
t all starts with the voice, because if the voice don’t grab you, no matter how interesting or gifted a singer may be, why would you bother with them? Fortunately the young London-based Turkish singer Cigdem Aslan has got a voice and a half: typically high and pure Mediterranean tones, undercut with a no- nonsense from-the-heart passion. But don’t just take my word for it, have a listen to To Prosfigaki (Little Refugee) her track on our Looking For A New England 2 covermount CD from last year and you’ll hear what I mean.
But there’s more… an appealing will- ingness to mix it up with musicians from other cultures, which she puts down to coming from a from a minority group her- self (she’s an Alevi). “I would describe myself as ‘minority: other’,” she tells me, when we meet for a drink on a warm, spring afternoon. “And if you are ‘other’, you can understand ‘others’ more easily!” She’s got a point of course, but I reckon that’s only a part of it. Born in the cultur - ally mixed city of Istanbul, where she went to school with Greek and Armenian chil- dren, and now resident in an even more culturally mixed city, Cigdem has been sur- rounded by a variety of cultures since day one. Furthermore, the Alevi are a pretty open-minded bunch anyway. Theirs is a branch of Islam that preaches tolerance and gender equality and places impor- tance on music and dance in their reli- gious rituals (funny how you don’t read about them in the Daily Mail) so all in all, perhaps we shouldn’t be too surprised that Cigdem’s comfortable in all different kinds of musical settings. Her main gig is singing with a Jewish group, the She’koyokh Klezmer Ensemble and she also performs Greek music with her own Rebetiko Quartet, as well as singing trad Turkish and Kurdish tunes.
She grew up around the rich Alevi musical culture (characterised by the baglama or saz), studied English Lit and played in a band that performed songs from all of Turkey’s ethnic minorities whilst at Istanbul University. Cigdem (pro- nounced Chee-dem) came over to the UK back in 2003 with the intention of study- ing for an MA, only to get waylaid into London’s music scene, initially with Dunav, the UK’s first Balkan music ensemble and subsequently the SOAS Rebetiko Band.
The collaboration with She’koyokh is not as unlikely as it first appears. After all, there’s a long-established Jewish commu- nity in Istanbul and the band draw on Balkan and Mediterranean Sephardic Jew- ish influences, as well as Eastern European klezmer. More surprisingly perhaps, the
Turkish community have taken to them and they frequently perform in London’s Turkish restaurants and also undertook a well- received tour of Turkey itself. Apparently clar- inettist Susie Evans is a particular hit, as women playing the instrument are seen as something of a novelty within the community. Cigdem can be heard on four tracks of Buskers’ Ballroom (Arc Music), She’koyokh’s very fine recent album.
She started singing rebetiko back at uni in Istanbul, drawn to the ‘Greek blues’ by its bit- tersweet quality “It’s very real, with a feeling of sadness, but at the same time joy.” Her Rebetiko Quartet (also known as Songs Of Smyrna) perform tradi- tional material along- side classic composi- tions from the 1930s and feature bouzouki, guitar and violin. “I don’t speak any Greek,” she confesses. “But I learn the songs phonetically and find out what the lyrics mean. Back in Istanbul someone would explain them to me. Now I benefit from the internet!” There are plans afoot to record a Rebetiko Quartet
H
album for the noted Roma/Eastern Euro- pean label Asphalt Tango.
er other project is a duo with her partner Tahir Palali, who plays the kopuz lute. Their repertoire is traditional, their style delicate, so
it’s a bit of a surprise to hear that they’ve hooked up with an electric guitarist, Raphael Roginski, who invited them over to his native Poland to perform at workshops and gigs. “We performed Turkish songs, with Polish input,” she recalls. “At one workshop we played a Kurdish song with a Polish brass band!” They’ve been invited back later this year, this time to perform songs associated with the late and much loved Greek laiko singer Stelios Kazantzidis.
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Can she imagine doing this broad a range of things, had she stayed in Istan- bul? “Well, I don’t think I’d be doing any- thing like I’m doing with She’koyokh. Or maybe even with my Smyrna quartet, because I’m collaborating with two Greek musicians. But something else is happen- ing here I think. Everything we do is politi- cal… even the fact that we’re performing together is political, it’s a message that we can still enjoy the same things. We can per- form together without attacking each other. It’s a very little thing, very simple, but even that carries a political message.”
Cigdem Aslan will be performing at The Musicport Festival, 4th – 6th Novem- ber at The Spa, Bridlington.
www.myspace.com/cigdemaslan F
Photo: Handan Erek
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